Tuesday Tunes #2: Sailor Moon is a Gateway Drug

When I was young, I remember going to a Blockbuster with my family. You know, when Blockbusters actually existed. I loved the whole process of going to Blockbuster. Picking the movie, choosing candy as we’re walking through the checkout line–ahh, good times. (Sorry, Blockbuster, Redbox is just better. R.I.P.)

One particular time, I was walking through the aisle of animated DVDs when I remember seeing a beautiful princess with giant blue eyes, surrounded by a background of glossy pink and red roses. I was young and very much inclined towards all things girly. So, of course, I lunged at it. I soaked it all in, oogling at the front cover, the back cover, the description. “Can the magic of Sailor Moon’s Crystal and Scepter protect all of mankind from Kisenian’s evil plan? Is she strong enough to save the Earth and her loved ones? Or will she be forced to choose between them?”

Sailor Moon was my gateway drug into the wide world of anime. And she was probably yours, too!

Sailor Moon is a Gateway Drug

I think even if you haven’t watched Sailor Moon, if you speak English and you’re a nerd, you have some idea of the English opening theme. You know, “fighting evil by moonlight”, and all of that.

However, if you’ve watched any version of Sailor Moon–dubbed or subbed (subtitled)–you know that both versions have quite the repertoire of music outside of their opening themes. In its maiden country, Sailor Moon released 21 soundtracks in relation to the show full of originally music written for the show. In America, Sailor Moon has three soundtracks of original music.

Today, I’m going to share with you a song that I enjoyed as a kid from each version–the English dub and the original Japanese. If you haven’t already enjoyed Sailor Moon, maybe these songs will convince you otherwise!

First, in the dubbed episode “A Knight to Remember” of Sailor Moon R, Lita (Makoto) delves into her past as she talks of her friend, Ken (Shinozaki), who was always there for her each time she was dumped by one of her many boyfriends. In the dubbed version, as she’s telling the story–which involves her being dumped by a boy while standing in a pavilion on a rainy day–Ken shows up with an umbrella to help her home, as “Rainy Day Man” is playing in the background.

This scene is entirely unique to the original anime, as it is not canon to the manga, but man… I LOVED THIS SCENE. I was a super big Sailor Jupiter fan, and I remember being incredibly upset that Ken never actually had any part in the show other than this episode. I’m probably still upset about it. Yep, still mad.

As for the Japanese song that I loved as a kid, it’s got to be “Ai no Senshi”, which translates as, “Warrior of Love”. The song is actually played twice during the anime, in episodes 68 and 102. In episode 68, “Ai no Senshi” was actually translated into English for the dubbed version rather than another song being used in replacement of it, that’s how legit this battle song is.

Seriously, look at this. Not to make a totally out-of-context spoiler, but what other song would you play when a daughter is trying to murder her parents? Good stuff, right there.

Like I said, there are LOTS of Sailor Moon songs. Which one’s your favorite?